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RANKED: The most expensive places to buy or rent in Spain in 2021

A recent study by property website Idealista sheds light on where property prices and rents remain sky-high despite the coronavirus crisis.

Published: 9 February 2021 18:03 CET
Updated: 3 May 2021 19:28 CEST
RANKED: The most expensive places to buy or rent in Spain in 2021
The coastal town of Sitges in Catalonia is one of Spain's classiest...and most expensive. Photo: Chan Lee/Pixabay

2021 is meant to be the year when Spain’s property market truly feels the pinch of the country’s shrinking GDP and rising unemployment. 

However, Spanish property prices have not dropped dramatically during the first four months of 2021. In fact, some sources such as Fotocasa have reported slight price rises in April, which they put down to growing interest among Spaniards in getting a good deal on a second-hand home.

Fortunately, rents are reported to have stagnated for the first time in five years, which is a positive sign for tenants looking out for a better deal.

What is clear is that prices in many of Spain’s most sought-after locations are still in a league of their own, even if some big cities such as Madrid, Barcelona, Seville or Palma saw property prices drop by 1.3 to 2.6 percent by the end of Q4 2020, and rents fell by up to 9 percent in these same locations.

A recent study by leading property website Idealista ranks the municipalities where it’s most expensive to buy or rent in 2021.

The most expensive municipalities in which to buy a property in Spain per square metre are:

San Sebastián (Basque Country) 4,833 €/m²

Calvià (Majorca) 4,411 €/m²

Barcelona (Catalonia) 3,995 €/m²

Sitges (Catalonia) 3,717 €/m²

Madrid 3,602 €/m²

Benahavís (Andalusia) 3,384 €/m²

Getxo (Basque Country) 3,370 €/m²

Marbella (Andalusia) 3,145 €/m²

Pozuelo de Alarcón (Madrid) 3,137 €/m²

Bilbao (Basque Country) 3,052 €/m²

The beautiful city of San Sebastián. Photo: Ultrash Ricco/Unsplash

Similarly, the municipalities with the highest average property price are:

Benahavís (Andalusia) €1,447,068

Pozuelo de Alarcón (Madrid) €1,076,505

Calvià (Majorca) €1,021,709

Marbella (Andalusia) €814,511

San Roque (Andalusia) €667,199

Sitges (Catalonia) €627,503

Jávea (Valencia) €541,357

Las Rozas (Madrid) €500,751

San Sebastián (Basque Country) €477,828

Getxo (Basque Country) €472,034

In terms of monthly rent, the most expensive municipalities per square metre are:

San Sebastián (Basque Country) 15.1 €/m²

Barcelona (Catalonia) 15.1 €/m²

Madrid 15.1 €/m²

San Bartolomé de Tirajana (Gran Canaria) 13.7 €/m²

Calvià (Majorca) 13.3 €/m²

Sitges (Catalonia) 13.2 €/m²

L’Hospitalet de Llobregat (Catalonia) 13.0 €/m²

Bilbao (Basque Country) 12.8 €/m²

Getxo (Basque Country) 12.0 €/m²

Badalona (Catalonia) 11.7 €/m²

The village of Benahavís near Marbella is one of Spain’s most expensive for buyers and renters. Photo: Mpilarf/Pixabay

And the municipalities with the highest average monthly rents are:

Benahavís (Andalusia) €2,251

Pozuelo de Alarcón (Madrid) €2,075

San Roque (Andalusia) €1,928

Calvià (Majorca) €1,879

Marbella (Andalusia) €1,796

Sitges (Catalonia) €1,445

Estepona (Andalusia) €1,323

Castell-Platja d’Aro (Catalonia) €1,320

Llucmajor (Majorca) €1,216

Altea (Valencia) €1,160 

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PROPERTY

BBQs, nudity and plants: What are the balcony rules in Spain?

Though many people hang laundry, plants, and flags from their balcony, in Spain the rules on what you can and can't do on 'el balcón' are not well-known.

Published: 8 May 2024 17:13 CEST
Updated: 11 May 2024 08:31 CEST
BBQs, nudity and plants: What are the balcony rules in Spain?

Imagine the scene: you’ve just bought or signed the lease on your dream apartment. It’s bright and airy, with plenty of space, and even has a nice-sized balcony to get some fresh air on. You can do whatever you want there, right? 

Not exactly. In Spain the rules on what you can and can’t do on a balcony (even if it’s private) depend on a few factors, namely the regional and local rules, as well as getting the approval of the building’s homeowner’s association – known in Spain as la comunidad.

Some of them might just surprise you.

READ ALSO: ‘La comunidad’: What property owners in Spain need to know about homeowners’ associations

There are four main things or activities on balconies that could potentially put you on the wrong side of the local rules and even get you fined: barbecues, plants, laundry, and flags.

In all cases (even if you don’t think you’re breaking any rules) you’ll generally need to consider two things: firstly, does this affect or change the building’s façade? And secondly: will la comunidad allow it?

Barbecues

In Spain there is no national law prohibiting barbecues on private property, so in principle it is legal as long as the barbecue is lit in a private space such as your own balcony, garden or terrace, and not a shared space.

Often in Spain, the roof (usually referred to as la terrazza) is a shared space people use for storage and hanging their laundry, so be sure to check with the comunidad.

In terms of your own balcony, however, although there’s no law saying outright you can’t have a barbecue, you’ll need to take into account the rules and regulations in force in each locality or region. There may also be specific rules within the building that long-term homeowners have developed over the years.

As we will see, many of these low-level regulations are delegated to local governments and town halls in Spain, so the answer to these sorts of questions is usually: it depends where you are.

However, according to Article 7 of Spain’s Horizontal Property Law, “the owner and the occupant of the flat or premises are not allowed to carry out in it or in the rest of the property activities prohibited in bylaws, which are harmful to the property or which contravene the general provisions on annoying, unhealthy, harmful, dangerous or illegal activities.”

This basically gives your neighbours the right to complain about noise, smells, smoke and any possible fire risk in or around their building, which barbecues could plausibly fall under.

As with co-living anywhere in the world, regardless of the regional or local rules, employ some common sense: be reasonable, listen to neighbour’s concerns and take up any disputes with the President of la comunidad.

READ ALSO: What you need to know before having a barbecue in Spain

Plants

Again, with plants the responsibility falls on each local authority to set the rules. In Spain, most regions and town halls state that, as long as the architectural or structural elements of the building are not changed or weakened in any way, putting plants on your balcony is permitted.

However, note that many terraces and balconies do have maximum weight regulations that must be respected in order to guarantee their safety, which is 200kg per square metre. If this figure is exceeded (and it can be proved) you could theoretically be fined.

Laundry

Laundry lines criss-crossing the streets might be one of the more picturesque images of Spanish life, but the people doing it might actually be breaking the rules.

How do you know? You guessed it, it depends where you. You’ll need to check with your local authority on this one, though municipal regulations in Barcelona, Madrid and Valencia all regulate hanging laundry from your balcony, which is again outlined in the Horizontal Property Law.

This principally seems to be because it affects the façade of the building (a common theme when it comes to balcony rules in Spain).

In places with rules about hanging laundry from balconies, you could be fined up to 750 euros if you don’t comply with the rules.

However, according to Foto Casa, even if you live in an area where there are no bans or penalties against hanging laundry on the balcony, you’ll still likely need the permission of la comunidad.

READ MORE: Spain’s weirdest laws that foreigners should know about

What about flags?

Whether it be the Spanish flag, the Catalan, Valencian or Andalusian flags, or LGBT, trade union or football team flags, flags proudly hanging from balconies is another mainstay of Spanish life.

It’s also one of the more controversial ones too, especially within comunidad meetings. Hanging flags on the balcony, as well as allegedly altering the aesthetics and security of the building (the same concern as with laundry) often has ideological connotations that can cause conflict.

Again, as with laundry, hanging flags on the balcony will require the approval of all the owners within the community, something that must be agreed at a meeting, as per the Horizontal Property Law.

However, if the flag is placed inside the property, as it is a private property, fellow homeowners cannot oppose it, even if it is visible from the street, according to Foto Casa.

Nudity 

Article of 185 of Spain’s Penal Code only considers being naked at home to be obscene exhibitionism and sexual provocation if it affects minors, in which case it is punishable with a fine or up to a year in prison.

Therefore, you could technically sunbathe shirtless or naked on your balcony in most cases without getting into trouble, although it won’t necessarily go down well with your neighbours and/or flatmates and you be reprimanded for it.

READ ALSO: Can you go shirtless or wear a bikini in the street in Spain?

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